Issues influencing the Uptake of Smartphone Reminder apps for People with Acquired Brain Injury

Abstract

Smartphone reminder applications (apps) have the potential to help people with memory impairment after acquired brain injury (ABI) to perform everyday tasks. Issues impacting the uptake of reminder apps for this group are still poorly understood. To address this, three focus groups were held with people with memory impairments after ABI and ABI caregivers (N=12). These involved a discussion about perceptions of, and attitudes towards, reminder apps combined with usability reflections during a user-centred design session (Keep Lose Change) after a walkthrough of an existing reminder app -- Google Calendar. Framework analysis revealed six key themes that impact uptake of reminder apps; Perceived Need, Social Acceptability, Experience/Expectation, Desired Content and Functions, Cognitive Accessibility and Sensory/Motor Accessibility. Analysis of themes revealed issues that should be considered by designers and researchers when developing and testing reminding software for people with memory impairment following ABI.